1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an apparatus for testing a medicinal tablet, and, more particularly, to an apparatus suitable for conducting quality control tests of the thickness, weight, and hardness of medicinal tablets.
2. Background of the Invention
In order to maintain and document the quality of medicinal tablets, pharmaceutical companies are required to perform physical tests on select portions of production quantity runs of pharmaceutical tablets. These selected tablets may be chosen at random from the production line or may be chosen according to a more precise and controlled schedule. The tablets that are selected for testing are subjected to certain physical and chemical tests to insure that the tablets meet the criteria established by the pharmaceutical company in seeking FDA approval for the medicinal tablet.
Among the physical tests performed on the medicinal tablet are thickness, weight, and hardness measurements. The thickness, weight, and hardness of the medicinal tablet are important physical criteria which determine the dosage of the medicine provided in each medicinal tablet as well as the solubility of the medicinal tablet. The dosage of medicine in each tablet and solubility of the tablet must be consistent with the criteria established by the pharmaceutical company in seeking FDA approval for its medicinal compound.
In order to automate the physical testing of the tablet, certain apparatus have been previously developed and sold. Such apparatus are designed to receive a tablet and move the tablet among three separate testing stations, one station for each of the thickness, weight, and hardness measurements. The testing stations can be arranged on either a linear path along a top surface of the apparatus or along a circular or rotary path.
A problem frequently encountered with such automated apparatus is the alignment of the medicinal tablet for hardness testing. When seeking FDA approval, a pharmaceutical company tests the hardness of the tablet by crushing the tablet along a predetermined axis, usually the longest diagonal axis presented in the tablet. Accordingly, any automated testing apparatus must align the tablet in the hardness tester such that the hardness tester crushes the tablet along the same predetermined axis. If the tablet is not properly aligned, the tablet will be crushed along a different axis, thereby providing potentially inaccurate hardness measurements. Accordingly, there is a need for an apparatus which will automatically position an irregularly-shaped tablet in a hardness tester such that the force needed to crush the tablet along the predetermined axis is measured.